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孤陋寡闻 (gū lòu guǎ wén) — ignorant and inexperienced; ill-informed and narrow-minded

Definition

A written chengyu meaning 'ignorant and ill-informed' — usually self-deprecating ('I really am ignorant') or a polite way to admit limited knowledge. Strongly negative; do not use to describe others carelessly.

phrase
ignorant and inexperiencedill-informed and narrow-minded

Examples

  • ，孤陋寡闻。
    Tā cóng xiǎo zài nóng cūn zhǎng dà, duì chéng shì shēng huó gū lòu guǎ wén.
    He grew up in the countryside, so he is ignorant about city life.
  • ，孤陋寡闻。
    Duō dú diǎn shū, bú yào ràng bié rén jué de nǐ gū lòu guǎ wén.
    Read more books; don't let others think you are ill-informed.
  • 孤陋寡闻，。
    Wǒ zhēn shì gū lòu guǎ wén, lián zhè ge cháng shí dōu bù zhī dào.
    I am truly ignorant — I didn't even know this common knowledge.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

孤陋
孤gūalone陋lòunarrow
联合Coordinate
寡闻
寡guǎfew闻wénknowledge
偏正Modifier + head

孤 (alone) and 陋 (narrow) pair with 寡 (few) and 闻 (knowledge) to mean limited learning.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
子子zǐchild
Sound part声符shēngfú
瓜
瓜guā孤gū
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

孤 uses 子 (child) to show a child, and 瓜 to give the sound.

Open 孤 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 宀宀miánhouse
  • 頁頁yèhead

The form 寡 pairs 宀, a house, with 頁, a head: one head in a house, alone.

Open 寡 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 聞; 闻 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
門
門mén聞wén
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 聞, 門 supplies the sound and 耳 is an ear; this explanation is about 聞, not the simplified 闻.

Open 闻 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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